A recent poll indicated that Americans dread blindness more than any other disability. The leading cause of blindness among white Americans is AMD (Age Related Macular Degeneration), and AMD is strongly associated with increasing age. As people get older, the risk of acquiring AMD increases simultaneously. It is important to mention that no one becomes completely blind from AMD, since some peripheral vision remains. But, the important central vision is lost. People over the age of 65 are at a 23% risk and the risk increases to nearly 40% over age 74. The 2010 American census indicates a population of 308,000,000 residents and it is increasing by about 10% annually. Studies indicate that by the year 2025, the population of people in the United States is numbered six times higher than in 1990. As a higher percentage of people reach age 60, AMD becomes a more serious medical issue for many elder people. Dr. Carl Kupfer publicly stated that 15 million Americans have signs of AMD. The prevalence is expected to rise to 21 million as the baby boomers age. At these rates, the incidence of AMD is expected to soon take on the aspects of an epidemic.
AMD is a little understood disease. It is a chronic condition that is the leading cause of vision loss in Americans age 40 and older. Many people are not aware of this incurable life-changing affliction. It causes no pain and often advances so slowly that many people notice little change in their vision until they become afflicted, and sometimes people can be suddenly afflicted. Women appear to be more at risk than men, and white Americans are much more likely to lose vision from AMD than African Americans. There is no known cure for the affliction but stem cell research could hold promise. However, application of current research is probably five years or more away. By 2020 the number of people having AMD is expected to increase significantly. AMD is a single disease which occurs when the macula, the central portion of the retina that is important for reading and color vision, is damaged, and there are two forms of AMD, Dry & Wet.
Dry AMD: The dry form is more common. More people with intermediate and advanced AMD combined have the dry form. An early sign is usually blurred vision. As the loss of light sensing cells becomes greater, victims see a small, but growing, blind spot in the center of their vision, and there is no FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approved treatment that exists for dry AMD.
Wet AMD: The early sign is that straight line vision appears irregular. This is a result of small blood vessels leaking fluid which lifts the macula, distorting vision. Early symptoms can be a serious warning with no remedy currently known to cure wet AMD. “LUCENTIS” is one of the medicines that have been approved as a treatment by the FDA for wet AMD at a cost of approximately $2000 per injection. “AVASTON” is another medicine which has not been approved by the FDA for use in the eye, but is being used off-label, at about $50 per injection. An average of eight injections into the eye is required annually for either treatment.
Low vision presents a multitude of problems and reading small print is one of them. Some low-vision devices are available to help with mobility and visual tasks. These low-vision devices all fail to adequately illuminate small print material or other materials that a user wants to read while also holding the material in a comfortable and easy-to-see manner. Currently, there are no effective apparatus that can assist a user who has AMD and allow him/her to perform personal activities such as reading a book or writing without having to hold the book for an extended period of time. It is therefore an object of the present invention to introduce an apparatus for book holder that comprises a magnifying lens, a plurality of LED lights, and a reading support stand to allow a user to clearly read a book without the need a his/her hands.